City of a Shadow
by MagicWords22
Summary: With life settling down in Ninjago, Kai decides to propose to Dessie. But a shadow hangs over Ninjago, and without warning things are thrown into chaos. Will their love last? Will the ninja completely turn their backs on Kai? Will this darkness be stopped? Sequel to NINJAGO: Tournament of Elements.
1. chapter 1

Chapter 1: All in one day 

Kai shoved his phone into his coat pocket and sprinted to his motorcycle. Not even bothering with the helmet, he started it and took off.

How could they do this? How could they believe this lie?

Hot angry tears made his temples moist as he raced away from the Bounty. He didn't watch the speedometer - he didn't care how fast he went.

He didn't care about anything anymore.

That look on their faces. The hurt that they blamed him for.

He just needed to escape.

He sped down the empty highway, leaving Ninjago City. It was late in the spring day, but winter was still holding on to the world with an icy touch. He felt the chilly wind in his face, but he didn't care. His heart was broken. Betrayed by everyone he knew. Nothing else mattered.

His day hadn't started out so awful. In fact, he'd been actually really happy this morning. His tears began to multiply as he remembered just how perfect he'd thought things were, when Dessie had woken him up this morning, with her pretty smile…

~ Earlier that day ~

"Kai, wake up!" Dessie said. Kai moaned and rolled over. "Just…just ten more minutes…" he groaned, burying his face in the pillow.

"But what about our date? You said you had something to show me today."

"But…but…" Kai mumbled.

"Aw come on," she said, climbing in the bed. "I'll tickle you if you don't get up."

"I'm not ticklish," he murmured, one eye half open.

"And I'm not a healer who just took a small class on pressure points," said Dessie sarcastically. Kai sighed; it was true that she was taking healing classes with Ms. Take [Miss TAH-kay, the best healer in Ninjago - but that wouldn't make her able to know where certain tickle spots were.

"I highly doubt - " he began, but she was already tickling him. His eyes grew wide and he threw back his head and giggled uncontrollably. She laughed as he gasped for air, and tried grabbing her hands as they tickled his belly.

"You can't stop a tickle monster!" she cackled, her nimble fingers moving up and down his torso without mercy.

"I-I-I'm gonna die!" yelled Kai, hopelessly drowning in a fit of giggles as Dessie found his most ticklish spot by his ribs. "Stop! I give I give!"

"Oh fine," she said, releasing him. "I suppose I can stop and let you get ready. When will we leave for our date?"

"In half an hour?" he asked.

"Sure," she said.

About a half hour later, Kai walked out in a black leather jacket and sunglasses on. He grinned lopsidedly at her. "Ready?"

"Well hello Firefly," she snorted. "I suppose this is to be a grand occasion?"

"No," he said. "A flippin' sweet one."

"Alright!" she cheered, taking his arm. "Lets go!"

Kai grinned as they went outside and mounted his motorcycle. They had been dating like this for about a year - and Kai knew deep down that Dessie was the one. But he decided to test her a little bit.

"Does Zane's falcon have to come with?" Asked Dessie.

Kai paused. "Uh," he said, "yeah. It was Cole's idea."

She looked at him, clearly not believing him, but she said nothing as she put on her helmet and wrapped her arms around his waist.

There it was. That tingly feeling he always got when she touched him. He smiled and started the bike. _I gotta be the luckiest guy in all Ninjago!_ He thought, revving up the engine and taking off.

Her grip tightened a little, and he laid a hand over hers, holding it against his heart. He heard her laugh by his ear, and his smile grew wider as he envisioned her smile.

"Where are we going?" she asked loudly, trying to be heard over the wind.

"It's a surprise!" he yelled back, speeding up.

"What kind of surprise?" she yelled. "Wait - is that why the falcon is with us? Are we going to do something dangerous?"

"Nah," he shouted, turning off from the main road and merging onto the highway. "I wouldn't put you in danger."

She laughed again, flattered, and gave his hand a squeeze. Kai had to smile - their relationship was going so good. He was just crazy about her, and she acted like she enjoyed his company. But he wasn't sure that she loved him in the same way he loved her. He was ready to marry her, but he was unsure if she would say yes. And if he couldn't be certain of her answer, he wasn't sure he should ask.

But when they were together, he wondered if he shouldn't just pop the question. He always got lost in her lovely eyes, and if she just touched him, then he felt like he would willingly stay in her arms until the day he died.

But he had never done this before. Was he jumping the gun too fast?

She hadn't really confessed any feelings for him. Sure she'd wanted to date him, but dating and marrying were two different things. And so he had decided to ask Zane if he could borrow the falcon for their date. I'm gonna test her just a little, he thought. Zane had willingly programmed the falcon to count how many times Dessie laughed or looked deeply into Kai's eyes. Perhaps Kai would be able to judge from the results if Dessie loved him back.

They sped along the highway, nearing the Sea of Sand.

"Are we going to Ed and Edna's?" asked Dessie, curious.

"No," said Kai with a grin.

They neared Jamonikai Peak.

"Are we going to Jamonikai Peak?" asked Dessie.

"Um, kind of," said Kai with a mysterious smile.

She pinched him. "Tell me," she begged.

"You little stinker!" he said. "Have patience!"

Kai masterfully maneuvered them up the mountain, then parked the bike on a flat slope.

Dessie climbed off and laid her helmet on the seat, turning slowly to take in the beauty of Jamonikai Peak. It was big and sometimes dangerous with landslides in the summer from the rain, but the ground was firm from being frozen all winter at the moment. Dessie breathed the scent of pine, and smiled in the clear mountain air.

"It's beautiful up here," she said. "But why are we here?"

"I wanted to show you something," he said, taking her hand. He lead her into the forested area of the mountain, where the sun hit the peaks and nourished the plants that grew there. The grass was growing back from sleeping for the winter, and it was soft under their feet. The pine trees towered above them, shielding them from the brisk wind. Sunlight came through the tree tops in shafts of light, and Dessie smiled as the melting snow sparkled in the sunshine.

"What is this place?" She asked in a soft voice.

"It's a little place that I call home," he said softly. "I haven't ever shown anyone else this place, and I thought that you might like it." I hoped, anyway.

"I'm the first person that you have brought here?" she asked, in that surprised voice again. Of course you are, he thought to himself, almost hurt that she didn't think that it was natural for her to be the first person to see something special to him.

"Yeah," he said aloud, wondering why she was surprised by that. Was it because she didn't feel like she could show him things that were special to her? Come to think of it, she never really talked about the healing classes that she was taking. Did she feel like she couldn't talk to him about certain things?

She was grinning at him. "Are you trying to figure out how I feel about you?"

He stared in shock. His face grew bright red as he stammered out,"W…what? How…was I talking out loud?"

She threw her head back and let out the most beautiful laugh he had ever heard. "Oh Kai," she giggled. "It was written all over your face. You kept scrunching your eyebrows, and -" she was lost in another fit of giggles.

"Wow," he sighed. "So I need to work on a poker face, huh?"

"Or on talking to me about your feelings," she said, her giggles ending in a contented sigh. "I take it you want to know how I feel about…us."

Kai bit his lip and nodded. "The fact of it is, we've been dating for a year," he said softly, playing with his jacket zipper nervously. "I…I love you. Like, I want to spend every moment that's given to me with you."

She blushed deeply and looked down. "And that's why you wanted to show me this special place," she murmured.

"I kinda want to build a house here," he said. "Just think of how beautiful a little cabin would be here. Sure it'd be a long drive to work, but our kids would love the excitement of going into the city to buy groceries and stuff, and there are tons of plants here for healing that you could gather and put together all the time. And this place is pretty tucked away - landslides never hit this area, because this part of the mountain is made of a special mineral called Yung Stone…" he trailed off, searching her face. She was looking down at her feet, hands clutching her satchel.

"D…Dessie? I…I didn't mean to upset you."

She looked up at him. There were tears in her eyes, but she was staring at him with a huge smile.

"Kai, that sounds wonderful," she said. "And to tell you the truth…I was scared to tell you how I felt about you because I was afraid you didn't love me as much as I love you."

He stared. "For real?" he whispered. "You…you love me?"

"I wake up with you on my mind," she said, blushing. "And I have been hoping that a day like this would come when you would tell me you loved me and…and that you wanted to spend your precious life with me. I haven't told anyone about these feelings because…well, this all seems like a dream. Almost too good to be true. But Kai…I really want to build a cabin up here with you, and live out my life with you. I know things can get dangerous for us," she added. "You are a protecter of all that is good in Ninjago. And I want to marry someone as good and wonderful as you."

He felt like he would float away. "Really?" he breathed. He had hoped, but he couldn't have imagined her loving him this much.

"Kai Tefuto, would you take me as your wife?" she asked softly.

"Dessie Renaro," he said softly, heart leaping as he said her name and stared long into her eyes, "could you ever find me good enough to be your husband?"

"I already have," she smiled.

Suddenly, the falcon gave a cry and landed near them on a branch. A holographic image of Zane came up, and Kai raised his eyebrows. He had never seen Zane so distressed.

"Kai, Dessie," he said urgently. "We need you both to return quickly. We need to speak with you as soon as possible."

"What's wrong?" asked Dessie.

"Cole will not permit me to say," Zane said. "He has said that you must see it for yourselves."

Kai and Dessie ran back to the motorcycle. Kai started the bike as Dessie shoved their helmets on their heads, and then held on to him tightly as they rushed back.

"What do you think is wrong?" Shouted Dessie over the wind.

"I have no clue," he yelled back. "I've never seen Zane so upset though. It must be very serious."

 _Please let everyone be ok,_ he thought. As they sped back to the Bounty, he wondered if there had been an accident of some sort. And why would Cole not let Zane tell them what was wrong? What was he hiding?

 _Or protecting,_ he suddenly thought, glancing in the rearview mirror at Dessie. Was there something that Cole didn't want Dessie to know? Or maybe something that the Master of Earth wanted to tell his sister in person?

Curiosity ate at him as they got back and rushed onto the ninja's flying ship. "Here we go," murmured Dessie behind him as they ran below deck.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: The perfect day gone bad

Cole had his back to them, and seemed to be very interested in something outside the window. Nya was sitting next to Jay on the couch, her face wet from crying. Jay looked like he'd been told the world was ending. Zane didn't look much happier - he was pacing back and forth like a man trying to work out a horribly hard problem in his mind.

When Kai and Dessie ran in, they stopped short. Kai stared at everyone, wondering what type of news could cause everyone to look like this. Nay looked up at him, and then burst into tears.

"Nya!" cried Kai, rushing to her side. "What is it? What's wrong!?"

"Don't touch her!" yelled Jay, wrapping his arms around Nya protectively. Kai stopped dead in his tracks, shocked into silence.

"Wh…why not?" demanded Dessie, eyes wide in surprise. "Is something wrong?"

"And why on earth can't I comfort my own sister?!" yelled Kai, furious.

"Because," said Jay, not missing a beat, "people want their problems to stay away!"

"Excuse me?! Are you implying that I am her problem?!" bellowed Kai, drawing himself up to his full height. "Say that again! Say it to my face!"

"STOP!" roared Cole. Everyone stilled. He turned from the window and walked over to Kai, towering over him. "Sit down."

Kai stared for a moment, shocked by the look on Cole's face. He'd never seen Cole so disgusted and angry in his entire life. In fact, Cole had never used that tone on any of his fellow ninja before either.

"I said sit," he snarled in Kai's face.

Kai promptly sat, staring up at Cole in confusion. "What the heck is going on?" he demanded. "Why are you all acting so…so weird?"

"I'd say this is pretty normal, all things considered," muttered Jay.

"Kai, where were you last night?" asked Cole sternly. "Tell me in clear detail exactly where you were."

Kai looked quickly at Dessie, then back at Cole. "Cole, what -?"

"Just answer the question," rumbled Cole.

"I was at work," said Kai, puzzled. "I always work late on Thursdays. I have the day off on Fridays."

"Do you have an alibi?" asked Zane softly. "Proof that you were, in fact, at work?"

Kai stared at Zane. The nindroid had stopped pacing and was watching Kai, eyes hopeful.

"You could call my boss," said Kai slowly. "I closed up the smithy myself though. I was alone for most of it."

"Did anyone see you at 11:20 PM last night?" asked Cole, his intense gaze burning into Kai.

Kai looked at him, confused. "Are you guys interrogating me?" he asked, surprised. "Am I seriously being cross-examined right now?"

"JUST ANSWER THE QUESTION!" shouted Cole. "Do you have any proof that you were at work at 11:20 PM last night?!"

"NO!" Kai shouted back. "EVERYONE HAD GONE HOME!"

Zane turned away, hanging his head. Nya sobbed into Jay's shoulder, and Cole turned away slowly, shoulders drooping.

Dessie stamped her foot. "For heaven's sake!" she exclaimed. "What is going on?!"

"I was walking home last night from my work," said Cole slowly. "I was walking down Harbey Lane, by the bar. I heard a familiar voice, and I turned to see him - " he pointed an accusing finger at Kai, who's jaw dropped in shock - " coming out of the bar, drunk."

"Wh…WHAT?!" cried Kai. "I took the oath! We all did! I was NOT at the bar last night, dude! How dare you accuse me of such an - "

"I'm not accusing you," said Cole in a low voice. "I'm convicting you. I walked up and asked him who he was. That drunken jerk told me he was Kai Tefuto, and that I was Cole Renaro, king of horrible cooking." He glared. "He also wasn't alone. A sleazy blonde was hanging all over this, Kai Tefuto," Cole spat the name like it tasted bitter. "I've never thought you could ever be so vulgar," he continued, "but nothing has ever turned my stomach as much as seeing you and that blonde, making out and drinking like worthless trash. You've cheapened yourself and your promises."

Kai's mouth was hanging open. He just stared, dumbfounded. "W…what did I ever do to you!?" He cried, horrified. "Why are you lying about me like this?!"

"I'm NOT lying!" yelled Cole.

"Where is your proof?!" demanded Kai. "How do we know you weren't the drunk one?"

Cole turned on him. "Don't make this harder than it has to be," he snarled, eyes blazing with a fury Kai had never seen in them. They were hard as granite, and as sharp as flint. "I would never just accuse you - I would have defended your honor to the end. But I have evidence that even Zane can't ignore."

"Cole," whispered Dessie. Kai and Cole looked at her. Dessie's eyes were wide with fear, and her face was pale. Tears were welling up in her eyes as she whispered, "Cole, what evidence?"

Cole walked to her and handed her his phone. He looked into her eyes and whispered, "I'm sorry. If I had known, I would have stopped your relationship with him a long time ago." He unlocked his phone and loaded a video. "Watch it. Dessie," he added softly, face sad, "I'm sorry. I know you loved him."

Kai stared. Of all the nightmare's he'd had, this one topped them all.

Dessie looked at Kai, uncertain, then began playing the video. Kai could hear the audio, and he raised his eyebrows. It sounded just like him. Like, JUST like him. He could hear the raucous laughter from the person who sounded like him, and Cole questioning his identity.

"I'm Kai Tefuto," slurred the voice. "And…and you are Cole, the King of Horrible Cooking." The voice laughed, then added a stinging remark that Cole had left out. "Hey, keep this under your hat, okay? I wouldn't want Dessie to figure this out."

Kai's eyes bugged, and the color drained from his face. Not only did this person sound like him - but they had known everyone's names?! This person could be a serious threat!

He looked at Dessie, knowing she would set them straight. He could practically hear her now, yelling out "It doesn't look like him! How could you all doubt him like that?"

But no such speech came. He looked at her quickly, and felt his heart shatter.

She was staring at him. Her eyes were huge, and a large tear trickled down her cheek. Her expression told him exactly what she thought of this video.

He had betrayed her.

"Dessie," he said quickly. "Dessie, you know me. I would never - "

"Never what?!" demanded Cole. "Never lie? Never hide anything from us?! Never make out with some random person at the bar?!" He paced like a caged animal. "We trusted you! We protected you! We fought by your side, and we took an oath with you! We decided to abstain from alcohol, because we could be disarmed easily if under the influence!" Cole whirled on Kai, rage evident on his face. "And what did you do? You betrayed every one of us. How long were you leading Dessie on? How far were you going to take her before you dumped her into the garbage like a disposable rag?!"

Dessie began to cry. "He…he showed me where he wanted to build a house…" she sobbed. "He…told me he loved me…"

"Dessie," cried Kai. "Don't believe him! This is a lie! I still love you! I still want to spend my life with you!"

"ENOUGH!" roared Cole. "Stop torturing her! Leave her alone!"

"No," yelled Kai. "You leave me alone! Can't I defend myself?! Zane, tell them I am innocent! Tell them I didn't do it!"

Zane hid his face in his hands. "I can't," he moaned.

"What?!" cried Kai. "I thought you could sense the truth - "

"You both are telling the truth!" cried Zane. "It doesn't make any sense, but if you were extremely intoxicated, then you might not remember, thus believing that you are in fact telling the truth!"

"Nya," begged Kai, turning to his little sister. "I would never betray you guys like this. Please, hear me out - "

"We've heard enough," said Cole quietly. "And we're done."

Kai froze. Done? What did 'done' mean?

Dessie was standing there, crying softly. Kai felt his heart throb with pain, knowing what she believed about him. He turned to her, eyes begging her to understand. "Dessie," he whispered. "Please."

Her face crumpled like a wilted flower, and she ran from the room, sobbing. "Dessie!" cried Kai after her, but then squeaked as Cole lifted him from his chair by the collar of his shirt.

"You are hereby banished from the Destiny's Bounty," he said, dragging the red ninja by the collar to the door.

"COLE!" thundered Kai, clawing at the Master of Earth. "Let me go!"

"As in accordance with the vow you took," snarled Cole, "since you have now broken it, you now face the consequences."

"Cole, I can walk myself!" shouted Kai. "LET ME GO!"

Cole threw him down the on-ramp of the Bounty. Kai rolled to a stop at the bottom, then got to his feet and brushed off his jacket angrily. "Cole, why are you doing this?!"

"Because you are now an outlaw!" said Cole, glaring darkly. "You aren't one of us anymore!"

Kai stared. "And why am I not one of you?!" he demanded. "I am still a ninja!"

"You are a ninja with no honor!" screamed Cole. "You are a warrior who sold his worth! You know what the rules are! You know what I have to do!"

Kai opened his mouth, then stopped. The words of Sensei Wu echoed in his mind as he realized what Cole meant.

 _"When a ninja falls away from what honorable, and betrays the ways of the ninja, then he must be outlawed; forever cursed to wander separated from those he fought beside. The leader of the ninja must banish him from his comrades presence, and he must be forever labeled as a ronin; a traitor."_

"You don't mean…" began Kai, then trailed off. "You do, don't you."

"Why did you do it?" asked Cole, eyes sad. "Why did you have to betray everything we love by doing the one thing that would kick you out?"

"I didn't," said Kai. "Somebody else did."

Cole sighed. "Have it your way." He turned away, the paused. He looked over his shoulder at Kai, expression stone cold. "Ronin."

Ronin.

Kai cried fresh tears as he sat in the spot he had showed Dessie just an hour ago. His motorcycle was parked just a few feet away, with only one helmet on the seat. The skies above seemed oblivious to his sorrow, and the sun showed despite the grayness he felt inside. The birds sang, untouched by the shadow that hung over his heart.

"I…I'm all alone now," he said aloud, voice cracking with tears. "No one wants me anymore."

He couldn't really be angry with Dessie. Sure, he wished that she hadn't believed the lies. But she was just…afraid, maybe. Cole had seemed so certain; and even Nya had turned her back on him. Why would she doubt the veracity of the video?

He hung his head. Everything was just…gone. Everything he had held in his life - gone.

Dessie had run to her room, sobbing for all she was worth. I'm never going to love again! she vowed. She burst into her room, then slammed the door shut. She stood there, hand still on the door handle, crying softly. She could still see him, cornered by Cole, silently abandoned by the others, looking at her, his soft brown eyes pleading as he said, "Dessie…please."

She slumped against the door, sobbing. Why did this hurt so badly? Seeing Kai as a slobbering drunk had hurt her deeply, but seeing the equally drunk blonde receiving his love had put a fire in her belly. Even now, she wanted to scream and break everything fragile in the room.

He betrayed me.

He used me.

He was never what I thought he was.

I'm lucky he's gone.

I'm fortunate he'll forget about me.

I'll be better off this way.

These thoughts slowly faded as she stared at her hands. She paused, staring at her soft, white hands in wonder. How many times had she longed to hold him? She turned and faced her mirror, looking at her puffy red eyes. How many times had she wanted him to notice their color? She looked at her lips, trembling tearfully. How many times had she wanted to kiss him? To speak plainly, and tell him she was the luckiest girl in the world, because she loved him?

And all of that changed…because of a video?

No! Because of what was ON the video! cried the hurt voice inside her. Because of who he really is! How do you know he ever loved you?!

"But would a loyal girl take back her love so quickly?" she whispered aloud. "Would he have done that to me, if our roles were reversed?"

"I guess you'll have to ask him," said a familiar voice.

"KAI?!" She gasped, whirling to face him. He was sitting on her bed in the corner, legs crossed, grinning at her.

"Hi there," he said with an innocent laugh. "But I'm not just Kai."

And with that, the person before her began to shimmer into another shape. She squeaked in surprise as Cole appeared and waved with that familiar smile. Then they shimmered again, and Zane appeared, with his falcon on his shoulder. And again and again, this person showed her the people she knew and loved, changing from one to the other.

"Y…YOU!" she gasped. "I know who you are! You were Skylor's friend! You tried to help her, but then you ran away when I scared you!"

The person momentarily froze in Nya's shape, then shimmered back into Kai's. "Yeah, I am," they said. It was unnerving to hear Kai's voice with the knowledge that it wasn't really him. "And I still don't have to show you what I really look like," they added, smirking.

The video, Dessie suddenly realized. It was all a fake. This person staged the whole thing - they were trying to get Kai out of the picture! She looked at them, silently putting together the pieces. But why try to split up the ninja? They must be trying to do something evil - or take revenge. If Chen is connected to this - and without finishing her thought, she opened her mouth to scream. Cole would come running, and this imposter would be stopped!

But the scream never came. Suddenly fingers from behind closed around her throat, choking the scream before it could be heard. Her eyes widened in fear and horror, and she struggled against the strong hand that was trying to strangle her. "Well well," sneered a low voice in her ear. "Seems you have a fire in your chest. I know what to do with that."

There had been two people in the room. The shape-shifter had distracted her.

"Ack…" Dessie choked out. She struggled and tried to fling her body forward. But the attacker's other arm wrapped around her waist, pinning her to himself. "Not so fast," he said, voice low and smooth. "Stop struggling, darling. You'll hurt worse when you wake up if you keep this up."

She jerked, trying to break free. But she was beginning to see little dots everywhere, and she felt her limbs weaken from lack of air. "Good night," chuckled the shapeshifter, and the world faded into darkness.

"What did your dad say?" asked Jay. He was sitting on the couch, wishing Nya was with him. She had decided to go to bed early, and so Jay and Zane had been left to sit in silence alone as Cole left to call his father. Cole had just returned, face sad.

"He says he won't believe it until he sees the video. I guess Kai asked if he could marry Dessie, and Dad says that he gave Kai his blessing." He sighed. "Dad just can't see Kai doing something like this."

"Heck," said Jay. "I didn't believe until I saw the video either."

"I'm gonna go check on Dessie," said Cole. He sighed, and the other two could see that he hadn't enjoyed throwing Kai out. "Who knew, right? Who knew it would ever come to this. After all we've been through, too."

Jay rubbed his eyes wearily. "I think I'll go check on Nya, too," he said, rising from his seat. Cole nodded, then walked slowly to Dessie's room down the hall. He didn't look forward to talking to Dessie. He knew she was probably crying her eyes out, throwing away all the little tokens of love Kai had ever given her, and desperate to escape the heartbreak they were all feeling.

"Dessie?" he asked, knocking gently on the door. "Dessie, it's Cole. Can I come in?"

No answer. That's funny, he thought. Normally she would have answered me; even if she was feeling emotionally horrible.

He opened the door a little. "Dessie?"

The room was a mess. Pots and discarded plants were everywhere. Her bed was torn apart, and her mirror was shattered on the floor.

Dessie wasn't there.

"Dessie?! Dessie, where are you?!" He yelled, throwing the door open all the way. He could barely walk into the room - the place looked like a failed spinjitzu attempt in a grocery store.

Suddenly a loud scream broke the silence of the Bounty.

"Nya is GONE!"

Cole ran back to the main living room. "Has anyone seen Dessie?!" he asked.

"Has anyone seen Nya?!" cried Jay, running into the room, terror on his face.

Zane looked at both of them. "N…no," he said, unsure of what was an appropriate response in a moment like this. "I have not. I take it they are not in their rooms."

"Her room was a mess," Jay and Cole said at the same time, then blinked in surprise at each other. "It was?" asked Jay. "Dessie is typically very clean."

"Something bad has happened," said Cole. "Search the whole Bounty! We have to find them."

They scurried all over their flying ship, but to no avail. Dessie and Nya were simply not on board.

"They couldn't have gotten far," said Zane. "I will send my falcon to look for them."

"Do it," said Cole.

"Hey, here's their phones," said Jay suddenly. Zane and Cole turned in surprise to see that the blue ninja was right - Dessie and Nya's phones were lying face up on the coffee table.

"These weren't here a minute ago," said Cole.

"I agree," said Zane. "This is very peculiar."

Suddenly, both phones received a text simultaneously.

The ninja looked at each other, disturbed.

"Do we check it?" asked Jay.

"Maybe it's the kidnapper," said Zane, unlocking both phones and holding them up for the other two to see.

The text was from a number that said "Unknown". "That is never good," pointed out Jay.

"Just read the text," said Cole.

 _Two young women_

 _stolen away_

 _Taken by_

 _the shadow to play_

 _abandoned in the hallways_

 _left there to die_

 _in the hospital of mourning_

 _ronin come and say good bye_

 _You were like a child, tricked_

 _the game likewise was false_

 _come and wander cocky ones_

 _in the lightless halls_

 _the city is in shadow_

 _the day has turned to night_

 _stay at home and quake_

 _in fear_

 _or in the darkness fight_

"NYA'S IN DANGER!" shrieked Jay. "LET'S GO!"

"But we don't know where they are," protested Cole. "We need to think carefully. This is probably a trap. Zane, what do you think?"

"I know where they are," said Zane. "And we will need Kai's help if we want to save them both."


	3. Chapter 3

**WARNING: Prepare for feels!**

Chapter 3: To Battle

Kai stared at the poem on his phone. Two women? That could only mean Nya and Dessie. And that part about the ronin…

He leaped up from the little spot he loved, and ran to his bike. He jammed the helmet on his head and started the motorcycle's engine.

He knew where they were. And he would save them. Who cared if he was now ronin.

Nya and Dessie were ten times more valuable than his honor.

Adrenalin pumped through his veins as he sped back into Ninjago City. The wind made his eyes water, but he only accelerated. He was a ninja on a mission - a warrior with a purpose. Made ronin by a lie, he was ready to avenge his honor. With a fire roaring in his soul, he accelerated again, and sped to the downtown area.

There were many back alleys that would lead to where he was going. The hospital was on the northeastern tip of the city, and shortcuts might be the key to saving time.

"Kai!" cried a familiar voice. Kai slammed on the brakes and spun around to face Jay, who was riding his own motorcycle. It was naturally blue, and the ninja riding it wore a black and electric blue helmet to match.

"I didn't know you owned a bike," commented Kai, his voice low. He wasn't sure how he felt about meeting up with Jay after everything that had happened.

"Look, I'm sorry," said Jay. "I shouldn't have doubted you. I know it was all a lie. We got a text that Dessie and Nya have been kidnapped, and we think we know where they are."

"They are at New Ninjago Emergency center," said Kai. "Otherwise known as the Hospital of the Dead."

They both got quiet. The hospital had been a new addition to Ninjago City, but when everyone in it died of carbon monoxide poisoning, it had been abandoned. Everyone living stayed away from it, and there were rumors that a shadow hung over the plot of land it stood on.

Jay laughed nervously. "Oh. You got the text too, huh?"

"Yeah. I'm going there now. And you can come if you want." He paused. "I forgive you."

Jay breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks man. Let's go!"

They rode their bikes down the alley way and around a sharp corner. They could see the hospital in the distance, and with a glance at each other, they accelerated. Time was ticking.

Cole and Zane were waiting for them by the hospital's main entrance. Cole acknowledged Kai's presence by raising an eyebrow, then turned to Zane.

"Do we trust him?"

Kai bit back a sharp retort. They didn't have time to waste arguing.

"Cole," implored Jay. "It was all a trick! Remember the text?!"

"Cole, please," said Zane. "We must focus on the problem at hand. We can speak of this later."

Cole grunted, then eyed the tall building. "It's four floors," he said, and for a moment Kai felt an odd familiar feeling. Cole was laying down a plan, and they would all follow it - just like normal. But there was nothing normal about this scenario.

"Zane, you take the first floor. Be thorough." Zane nodded.

"Jay, you take the second. Leave no room unchecked, and listen carefully. You might hear our enemy, or the girls. I'll take the third floor, and Kai - you take the fourth."

 _He wants me to stay away from the others,_ Kai realized, gritting his teeth. So. Jay believed him to be innocent, and Zane seemed to be pretty neutral. _I guess I'll have to prove myself._

"Ready?" asked Cole. They all nodded. "Ninja-GO!"

()

Zane searched, quietly seeking out any signs of life. The first floor was dark, and his robot eyes naturally adjusted to the darkness. He reached out with his senses and felt with his emotions.

This place was unhealthy. Filled with chaos, the aura here was… confused. Tormented, even.

A place meant for healing. A place that instead, killed hundreds of people because of a carbon monoxide leak.

Zane took a deep breath and kept looking for signs of Nya and Dessie. He wanted to leave this place as soon as possible.

()

Cole watched as Kai leaped up the stairs two at a time and lunged through the entrance to the fourth floor. With a grunt of disgust, he shook his head and opened the door to the third floor hallway.

The hallway was dark, and as he felt his way around, Cole felt something wet soaking the cloth ninja shoes he was wearing. _Could it be blood?_ He thought, feeling his heart rate speed up. He felt for a light switch, and felt relieved when he flipped it, and the hallway was filled with white light.

He was standing near the entry door, next to the light switch on the wall. The hallway stretched out before him, and the doorways to hospital rooms were all hanging open. The floor shone in the light, and Cole realized that the floor was covered (more like flooded) with sitting water.

"Jay is probably wishing that he had an umbrella," He murmured to himself with a chuckle, despite the present circumstances.

"Cole?"

The whisper had been soft and trembled slightly. Cole quickly made his way to the nurse's desk - the whisper had come from somewhere over here.

"Nya?" he asked. He peered over the large counter, and beheld a very wet, exhausted Nya.

"Oh Cole!" she exclaimed, getting up on wobbly legs. "It was so scary!" She began to cry buckets of tears, and Cole awkwardly tried to comfort her. "They came up behind me, and dragged me away in a burlap sack! They have Dessie too, and they made us use our powers!"

"Slow down," he said gently, sitting her down in a nearby chair. "We know they have Dessie, and we are going to find her. Now, what was that about your powers?"

"We were kidnapped," began Nya, trying to dry her eyes but crying some more. "They knew Skylor Chen, and said that this was payback time. They strapped collars on us and told us that they were going to make us into weapons. They were convinced that I had powers, and so they put a collar with a little box on it on my neck and pushed a button on a remote." She began to cry harder. "I didn't think anything would happen, but csuddenly water was gushing out of my hands! They laughed and said that I must be a water elemental, and that I must not have ever discovered it."

And with that, Nya was lost in a sea of tears.

"That's awful," Cole said gently, laying a hand on her shoulder. "But I don't understand; are you upset that you have powers?"

"I…I…" Nya choked out, "I can't…be in love with Jay anymore!" And the sobs grew louder.

"Why not?" asked Cole.

"I am a water elemental," she wailed. "How can lightning and water mix? We'd kill each other by just touching!"

Cole stared. He'd never thought of that.

"And how can I tell him?" she sobbed out. "How can we ever recover from this? He's the most important thing in my life - how can I live with myself after this?"

"You need to talk to him," said Cole. "Or maybe Zane. I bet Zane would know how to help."

"I'm water," she cried. "He's lightning! How can this be fixed?!"

Suddenly they heard the door open. "Cole?" came Jay's voice. "Cole, are you here?"

"NO!" screamed Nya, shoving herself away from the desk. "Jay, stay away!"

"Nya!" cried Jay, totally ignoring her words and rushing over to them. His face looked worried, and he gripped the nurse's desk with his gloved hands intensely. "Nya, are you okay?"

"Jay," she sobbed, slowly sinking to the ground. "Jay, I…I…" she trailed off, crying.

"What's wrong?" he asked, nearly beside himself with worry. "Baby, what's wrong?"

"She's a water elemental," said Cole. "She thinks you can't be a couple, because you may inadvertently kill each other."

Jay stared, face growing pale. "What?! I…I…" he began, then stopped. "We need Zane. Zane should be able to help us."

"Jay, I don't know if this can be fixed," whispered Nya, sniffling defeatedly.

"Oh no you don't," said Jay, shaking his head violently. "I am not losing you without a fight. If we can never ever touch ever again, I am still all yours. We aren't ending like this!"

And with that, he ran off to find Zane.

"Nya, I know that you've been through a lot today," said Cole gently. "But don't give up on hope. Jay is going to go to the ends of the earth for you. I mean, he went into the scariest place in Ninjago City to save you! He'll find a way."

She laughed in spite of her tears. "I know he will. He's good like that."

"Nya!" cried Jay, rushing back in. "I've got Zane! He says he know whats to do! I mean, he KNOWS WHAT to do!"

Cole helped her stand up, and walked her over to Zane. The tall nindroid looked her over carefully with his sharp, frosty-blue eyes, and nodded. "She is unhurt," he said. "And she will be back to her normal, chipper self by tomorrow."

"But…but Zane," said Nya, surprised. "How can I and Jay be a couple if I'm - "

"A water elemental and a lightning elemental can't harm each other," said Zane. "According to your DNA, your mother had this same power. And your father was a fire elemental. To be completely honest, you are very mistaken in believing that being in close proximity to Jay or even touching him may hurt you. Elementals cannot hurt one another unless they decide to. And you and Jay would never make this decision. Quite frankly," said Zane, grinning, "there is nothing to cry about in this scenario."

Jay whisked her off her feet and kissed her squarely on the lips. "There ain't nothing in this world that can separate us," he promised.

Suddenly they heard gunfire. Nya gasped and clung to Jay, who ducked unconsciously.

Cole and Zane looked at each other quickly. "Kai," Zane breathed, and they all rushed to the stairs. Suddenly an explosive sound shook the building to it's foundations, and they all lost their balance for a moment. Then the gun shots started again. Cole scrambled to his feet and was on the stairs when there was another loud sound, as if something huge was falling apart, and then a loud scream. But it faded away quickly, and then a horrible silence fell over the entire hospital.

"Please," he whispered, throwing open the fourth floor entrance. "Let us not be too late."

()

Kai lunged into the room, sword drawn, mask pulled down over his face. He was ready to face the evil in the room. His eyes searched in the darkness, slowly becoming accustomed to the lack of light. He listened, and heard the sound of soft breathing.

He held up his hand, and slowly lit the room with his own flames. It was still very dark before him, but now he could see the light switch, and so he turned on the lights.

With a click, lights flickered, then flooded the room with a pale light. Kai stared at the torn, burned walls. The blackened, sooty floor. The smoldering doors that once led to the patients rooms. And at the end of the hall sat a chair with it's back to him. Sitting in the chair, dark brown hair matted and tangled about her shoulders, arms painfully bound behind the back of the chair, feet tied to the legs, barely supported by the chair itself, was Dessie. She wasn't quite sitting; she looked as though if she were untied, she would fall to the floor in a heap.

Then Kai noticed the blood on the floor beneath her. With rage and horror he rushed to her, yanking the mask from his face and kneeling before her.

"Dessie," he whispered. "Dessie, can you hear me?!"

She didn't move. Head bowed, shoulders bent, he couldn't see her face. Gently, he lifted her face so he could look at her.

Her face was flushed, and her closed eyes were swollen, but not blackened by any blows. Her nose had experienced a serious nosebleed, and Kai quickly surmised that it must be the reason there was blood on the floor. Her mouth fell open a little, and he felt her warm breath on his face. _She's alive!_ He rejoiced inside, quickly cutting her bonds. She fell into his arms, unconscious.

Kai pulled her close, gently feeling her limbs to be sure there were no broken bones. Her veins were unusually visible, and he wondered what the kidnappers had put her through. He breathed another sigh of relief as he came to the conclusion that she wasn't seriously hurt.

"Dessie," he murmured in her ear, pulling her into a gentle hug. "Dessie, can you hear me? Please wake up." He gently stroked her hair, trying to rouse her. As he did, he noticed that there was an odd little collar on her neck. He glared at it, and quickly cut it off, throwing it across the hall in contempt. His gaze returned to his only love, limp in his arms. "Please, Dessie. I need you."

She gave a shuddering intake of breath, then raised a trembling hand and gripped his shirt. He looked into her face, and saw that her swollen eyes had opened slightly. She winced in pain, and clung to him tighter.

"Who…who are you?" she asked hoarsely, rubbing her eyes with her free hand. "I…can't see in this darkness."

 _She's blind._

"Dessie, it's me. I've come to save you," said Kai gently, voice trembling a little. "You…you can't see anything?"

"Oh Kai!' She breathed, relaxing in his arms. "N…no. It's too dark. Can you make some light?" She hugged him tighter, then fought to keep her eyes open. "I'm never letting go of you again." Her voice was hoarse, and it sounded far away. "I'm so sorry. I doubted you. I betrayed you by thinking the worst about you. If you can ever find it in your heart to forgive me, know that I will always be your girl."

"I forgave you before I found you here," he said gently. "And sweetheart, you're blind. The lights are on. We need to get you to Ms. Take; she can heal you at her place."

He lifted her gently, and her head rested on his shoulder. Kai felt a pang of worry; Dessie needed Ms. Take, and fast. As he turned, however, he saw that they had not been alone.

Standing there, silent as a shadow, was a man that Kai had never seen before in his life. The man was tall - taller that Kai, but not taller than Cole. His face was young, but his eyes were old and filled with confidence. His pale skin was contrasted with dark features, and his eyes were dark gray. He smiled at Kai, and took a few steps toward him. His long black overcoat swished lazily about his legs, and his big boots made surprisingly little sound on the floor. Grinning wickedly, he reached inside the coat and drew two handguns, cocking them and pointed them straight at Kai.

"You think I'll just let you walk away with something I worked so hard to steal?" he asked in a raspy voice. "I didn't let you in here just so you could take her away. I wanted to bait you, and it worked. But if you want her to live, then you have to cooperate."

Kai stood there, silently assessing the situation. His sword could easily deflect any bullets, but his arms were full of Dessie. He couldn't pull a signature Kai-moment. He slowly looked from the kidnapper to Dessie, who was weakly holding on to him.

 _She's fading fast,_ he thought to himself. _She's pretty much out of commission._

"Can I set her down?"

The man raised an eyebrow. "Sure."

Kai gently laid her down on the floor. "It's okay," he said as she panicked and refused to let go of his shirt. "I'm going to work things out with this vampire, 'k?"

She reluctantly let go, then slipped into unconsciousness again. Kai hated seeing her just laying on the floor, so he took off his jacket and wrapped it around her.

"Aww," mocked the kidnapper with a sneer. "You loved her more than I thought."

"That's because you're a no good sleaze ball with a heart of malice!" snarled Kai, drawing his sword. The kidnapper took a shot at him, but it was easily deflected by Kai's sword. "You know nothing about love!"

"Hah! I know enough!" laughed the man. "My name is Shadow. And I was at the Tournament of Elements!"

Kai raised an eyebrow. "Meaning you are a crook and a coward!"

"Hardly!" snapped Shadow, taking another shot. Kai sidestepped it. "I was engaged to Skylor Chen!"

"HA! No kidding!" sneered Kai. "She was flirting with me!"

"Only to trap you!" shouted Shadow. He and Kai began to circle one another warily, watching the other like the well-trained fighters that they were. "I was told to leave and come back with friends from Ninjago City to help take back the island," continued Shadow. "But then you made your move! Skylor was taken away, deep down into the prisons under the city!"

"She made her choice!" declared Kai, eyes blazing. "She didn't have to break a bazillion laws, but she did! She chose the path she walked, and so did you! You didn't have to hurt Dessie, but you did! And now I am going to defeat you and take my Dessie home!"

"I made her into a weapon!" snarled Shadow, taking another shot. "You can't ignore the destruction around you! Who do you think did all this?" He gestured to the blackened walls. "She has more power than all of you ninja combined," he sneered. "That collar you took off could make her do whatever I wanted her to do. She could have blasted all of you into nothingness."

He glared. "But you got here faster than I thought you would. She wasn't conscious when you arrived, and so I couldn't activate the box."

"I don't know what you are talking about," said Kai. "And I don't care. You hurt her, and I'm taking you out!"

And then the gunfire exploded from Shadow. Kai ducked and deflected with amazing grace and agility, making sure no bullets got near Dessie as she lay, blissfully unaware of what was going on. Kai wreathed himself in flames, glaring at Shadow from behind tongues of fire.

Shadow grinned. "You don't frighten me," he said. "I've seen what your precious girlfriend can do, and quite frankly you ought to be afraid of _her_."

"And you are a liar!" shouted Kai, attacking viciously. His sword knocked a gun from Shadow's hand and he spun to slice the evil man in two.

CLANG! His sword bounced off a plasma shield that Shadow had quickly activated from a strange device on his forearm. "Haha!" the sneaky man laughed. "Try a little harder and you might stand a chance!"

BANG! BANG! The bullets whizzed past Kai's head, and one actually trimmed a lock of hair by his ear. Kai rolled to the floor and lunged, but only managed to grab at thin air.

"Rocket boosters?!" he exclaimed, staring as Shadow hovered above him, smirking. His boots were equipped with rocket boosters that even Jay would have admired. "You seem to know how to escape with speed," noted Kai.

"The name's Shadow, isn't it?" laughed Shadow. "Try to get me now."

 _He's playing with me_ , thought Kai disgustedly. _He thinks this will be easy, and he's enjoying himself. Well, playtime is over._

Kai slowly got to his feet. As Shadow watched, he walked over to Dessie and gently lifted her into his arms. He turned his back on the hovering man, and walked to the door.

Click!

"Where are you going?"

Kai stopped. He knew that the gun was aimed at his head. _Stupid. I have you now,_ he thought.

Laying Dessie by the door, he turned again to face Shadow. Still hovering in the air, the evil man was grinning, holding a cocked handgun. "You can't leave until I say you can," he smirked. "I hold all the cards."

"It's a good thing I snuck one up my sleeve," hissed Kai, and unleashed a fireball into Shadow's face. Flames exploded from the red ninja's hands and entire being, filling the hallway before him. Shadow was engulfed before he even knew what was happening.

But he wasn't completely incompetent either. As he felt his flesh burning, he acted quickly. With an enraged roar, he rushed at Kai, rocket boosters still intact. Kai stared, surprised, as Shadow advanced with amazing speed through the fire and seized the red ninja in his grip. Kai's eyes grew wide as he realized his mistake. Shadow was even more driven than he was.

The evil, burning man was going down. But he wasn't one to go alone.

With strong grip, flesh melting from his body, screaming in rage and gruesome pain, Shadow leaned back and somehow put his rocket boosters into fourth gear. Kai struggled against him, and unleashed hotter flames, but it didn't seem to phase Shadow. They were rushing down the hallway, locked together by Shadow's viselike grip. In the few seconds their flight lasted, Kai looked over Shadow's shoulder and saw what the man was planning to do in his last moments. They were rushing straight into the wall.

 _We'll break right through it!_ He realized. _He's gonna die from the fire, but I'll die from the four stories fall!_

But it was already too late. At the last nanosecond, Shadow spun and used Kai to break through the wall. They broke through the wall with a loud crash, and Kai saw stars for a moment. Then the frosty night air was in his hair, and he felt his stomach lurch as they began to fall. He screamed as they fell, faster and faster, struggling to come out on top. And then they hit the ground, and he was plunged into darkness.

()

Cole threw open the doorway separating him from the fourth floor. He stood there, shocked. Laying on the floor before him was Dessie, unconscious but safe. Beyond her were smoldering walls and blackened floor. And straight ahead, there was a burning hole in the wall; evidence of an epic battle.

Cole swept Dessie into his arms. "Dessie," he whispered, tears of relief on his face. "Oh Dessie!" She didn't stir, but just the knowledge that she was alive made his heart soar.

Zane entered behind him, and quickly examined the young woman in his arms. "She will not have any long term damage," he said. "And she will be temporarily blind, and thus need some of Ms. Take's medical attention, but most of all she needs large amounts of rest." Zane quickly took in the scene before him, then ran to the gaping hole in the wall. He gasped, "KAI!" and promptly jumped out the window, using his ice powers to slow his decent and safely land on the ground next to the fallen red ninja.

They all rushed outside to him. Cole holding Dessie tightly, and Jay, hand on Nya's shoulder as she knelt by her brother, crying. Zane was trying to stop the blood, and they all grew very somber as he began to frantically tear his own garments and bandage the red ninja.

Kai lay, his leg stretched out in a funny angle, blood oozing from a large wound on the back of his head. His eyes were closed, and his face looked ashen white. "Jay, get Ms. Take," said Zane, fear in his eyes. "Jay, get her _now_!"


	4. Chapter 4

**LAST CHAPTER!**

Chapter 4: The end of the day

Ms. Take was a wiry old woman with a feisty attitude. When the old woman heard Jay's pleading and begging for her help, she grunted and rushed off with him to save Kai, only when Jay revealed that Kai had saved Dessie's life. She had a soft spot in her heart for Dessie, and she was willing to save Kai on the young woman's account more than his own.

Kai was still laying on the ground, head gently bandaged with strips of Zane's gi. Ms. Take instructed the big ninja of earth to carry him gently inside the Bounty to a bed. "And hurry up!" she barked. But Zane saw the compassion and fear in her eyes, and knew that bringing Kai back might be challenging even for this renowned healer.

Cole, Jay, Zane, and Nya watched as she worked. They didn't understand half of what she was doing, but in spite of all of it, Kai just seemed to slowly fade. Soon he was barely breathing at all, and Zane watched tearfully as he scanned and assessed that Kai's respiratory organs were slowly shutting down.

 _Human life,_ he observed. _So precious, but so fragile, and unable to replace or duplicate._

Finally, Ms. Take took a step back. "Where is Dessie?" she asked.

"Resting," said Cole. "She was pretty shaken, and we didn't tell her about Kai."

"She'd know anyway," snorted Ms. Take, hands on her hips. "Bring her here - you said they were in love?"

"Madly," said Jay tearfully, and Cole pinched him.

"Then get her down here," said the snappy old woman. "She needs to hold his hand and try to bring him back."

"What do you mean?" asked Nya. "Is he…is he…"

"I've done all I can," she said. "The rest is up to him."

"What the heck does that mean?!" Demanded Jay.

"Medically speaking," Zane interjected, "there is nothing left to do. But emotionally, Kai might be able to mentally pull himself through. But often times patients like this respond only to people they know extremely well. Dessie would be the best one to draw him out of his coma by default. Nya is his sister," he added when he saw Jay open his mouth to protest. "But Kai has a different connection to Dessie than to his sister."

"All of you need to try to speak to him," said Ms. Take. "But she has a better chance at reaching him."

"I'll go get her," said Cole softly.

"Pray for a miracle," said Ms. Take to the others as Cole left. "Kai might not walk away from this."

()

The world was so colorful. It was so easy to breathe. Kai smiled in pleasure as he slowly sat up. "Wow," he breathed. "Are you guys seeing this?"

They didn't respond. And…they weren't looking at him. They were staring at the pillow behind him. Jay, Nya, Zane, Cole, and Ms. Take - wait, what was she doing here? - and Dessie, were staring at the pillow that had been under his head just seconds ago.

"Guys?" He asked.

"Dessie, talk to him," said Cole gently. Kai started - the richness of Cole's voice was gone. And he looked…grey. All of them did.

Dessie sat beside him and took his hand. Kai's breath caught in his lungs; he couldn't feel it. Her hand passed through his.

"WHAT?!" he screamed. "Dessie, why can't I feel you?! WHAT THE HECK - "

"Kai."

Kai stopped, staring at Dessie. She wasn't looking at his face, but rather at something behind him. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and turned to see -

"OH MY GOSH!" he screamed, leaping off of the bed.

He was lying there. His body, with his face, and his hair. Beat up, looking awful.

"Kai, please don't leave," Dessie whispered. "Please. You saved me, and I…I don't want to live without you."

Ms. Take slowly bowed her head. Zane sat down heavily, trembling with soundless tears, and Nya cried into Jay's chest, sobbing as if there was no tomorrow. Jay sniffed loudly and cried with her. Cole gently came and laid a hand on Dessie's shoulder.

"He…he's gone, Dess." Cole's voice cracked with emotion, and Kai realized suddenly how much his friend had cared, in spite of what had happened earlier. "I didn't even get to say sorry."

"No," she moaned, shaking her head. "No, he's still here! He has to be! This isn't how this ends!"

"Dessie," whispered Ms. Take, "I'm so sorry."

"No!" cried Dessie. "He's still here! He still loves me! He's coming back!" Large tears began rolling down her cheeks. "He's not leaving me," she whispered, burying her face in Kai's motionless hand. "I'm not letting him."

"I'm not dead!" cried Kai. "Why can't you guys hear me?!" He tried to hold Dessie, but his hands passed through her. "Why can't I feel?!" he shouted. "What is happening?!"

"My son," came a whisper. It blew past his ear like a laugh on the breeze, or like a passing kiss. "My son, why are you here so early?"

Slowly, barely daring to believe what his ears told him, he turned.

Standing before him, wide, disbelieving brown eyes riveted on him, was his mother, Sophia Tefuto. He'd forgotten how beautiful she was. With long dark hair and skin white and soft, her nose and mouth shared by Nya, and her deep, warm brown eyes passed down to Kai.

"My son," she whispered. "What tragedy has happened, that you are here? How have you died?!"

"M…Mom," he said, staring. "I…I'm dead?"

" _Kai_ ," came Dessie's voice. He turned again to her, and saw that she was still crying and holding his hand. " _Kai, please!_ "

"I…I'm dead," he whispered. "I'm dead!"

"Kai," his mother said softly. "Why do you look that way? There is nothing but green fields there, yet you seem to see something."

"My Dessie," he said. "And my friends. And Nya. And my bed. I still see them." He turned back to his mother, eyebrows furrowed. "And I'm not seeing any grass."

"Ah," said his mother with a relieved smile. "You are not gone yet. You can still go back."

He looked away. He wasn't sure about that. He looked back at himself in the bed. _That looks pretty painful,_ he thought to himself.

" _Kai, please!_ " Dessie's cry barely made it to his ears before it faded. " _Come back!_ "

"Darling," said his mother gently, "I see it on your face. Dessie is calling you."

"Do you like her?" Kai asked, looking for a reaction on his mother's face.

"I love her," said Sophia. "She is deeply in love with you. Her mother likes you too."

Kai raised his eyebrows, then looked down. His mother saw his surprise and said, "We watch you from here. We watch in pride, seeing what you do for the good of Ninjago."

" _Kai!"_ Came Dessie's voice again.

"Kai," breathed his mother, seeing the turmoil in her son. "Go back. You have many things that need doing yet. You have a child, waiting for you in the future. You have a life to live with Dessie. You know," she whispered, laying a hand on his shoulder, "not many people get this second chance that you are getting. I know that returning will be hard, and very very painful. But lean down, and look at her face."

Kai looked at his mother, then obeyed. He sat awkwardly _inside_ the bed, positioned so he could look directly into Dessie's face.

Even in the greyed, weird color that mortal people seemed to have, she looked beautiful. Her tears were streaked down her cheeks, and she was holding his hand tightly in her own two, beautiful hands. Her eyes were pleading as she yelled in anguish, "Kai! Don't leave me!"

Kai couldn't move. That look of desperation on Dessie's face broke his heart.

His mother sighed. "Oh my little boy," she said softly, then added, "You need to hurry. Make your decision quickly, or you will lose your chance."

Everything else was fading. Kai couldn't see Zane anymore, and Ms. Take had vanished earlier. Jay and Nya were fading, and Dessie was really all he could see. That and the grass his mother had mentioned earlier.

He stood. "I love you," he said, tears in his eyes. "But my future wife needs me."

She beamed at him and tenderly kissed him on the forehead. "I love you," she smiled. "But you have a life to live." She hugged him tightly, and Kai lost himself in his mother's embrace. "I'm so proud of you," she whispered in his ear. "Go with my blessing, with the knowledge that you have nothing to fear in death."

He squeezed her tearfully, then turned to face his body. "Okay. I'm ready." There was an awkward pause, and then he said, "Um, how do I go back?"

"Just try," said his mom. "Find your reason in your heart, and lay on the bed. You'll find your way back."

Again, awkwardly, Kai lay himself down on top of himself on the bed. "Here we go," he thought, and took a deep breath of perfect air. Dessie was beside him, but starting to fade away. " _Kai!_ " she begged, holding his hand up to her face. " _Please_." She closed her eyes, and pressed his hand against her tear-stained cheek. " _I love you._ "

"I love you," he said back, then winced. Pain shot up his leg.

" _Don't leave me,_ " she whispered through her tears.

"I'm not leaving you!" he shouted, and he saw stars as his head was engulfed in the biggest migraine he'd ever had. _Is my head broken?_

" _Please,_ " she sobbed. " _I want to be your wife._ "

"I really really want to be your husband!" he yelled, despite his growing headache. Everything was starting to go black.

" _I want to have children with you,_ " she moaned, weeping into his limp hand.

"OH YAAAASSS!" Kai shouted, and felt a sudden weight on his chest that knocked the air out of him. He was fighting to breathe, and suddenly he couldn't hear anything but the sound of blood in his ears and his heart struggling to beat in his chest. He couldn't see anything, and suddenly he felt heavy and numb. He was fighting to live now.

 _I love you. I'm not leaving you. Oh yeeeeesssssss…_

His words echoed in his mind as his heart began to slow. He suddenly had a pang of fear - was he going to make it out into the other side? Suddenly his reasons slipped his tired, wounded mind, and he felt himself sliding backwards.

 _I came here for something greater…_

Sensei's voice reached Kai's ears. Kai opened his mouth whisper his teacher's name, but his throat was suddenly parched, and his tongue felt as thick as a mattress.

 _…you. A fire burns bright in you. Harness it…_

Suddenly Kai understood. His passion and fire were out.

He clung to the image of Dessie's face in his mind, swearing to come through for her.

His life was too good to leave so early. He had a lot to do yet.

With a deep, painful breath and a cry of defiance, he pulled through to the other side.

"Oh my gosh!"

"He - he pulled through! He's breathing!"

"More like out of it! He was so dead!"

"Is he…is he fine?"

"Can he hear us?"

"HIS EYES ARE OPEN!"

"Jay, shut up! His ears will be hurting if you keep that up!"

 ** _"SILENCE!"_**

"Sorry Ms. Take."

"Kai?"

Kai slowly opened his eyes. His mind felt so muddy, and his chest stung as he gulped in large mouthfuls of air. No wait…that was everything. Everything hurt so badly that his eyes were watering.

Speaking of everything, all he could see were blurry shapes and colors. He could make out someone beside him, and he felt someone holding his hand, but everything else was just blurriness. His eyes tried to focus, but then they stung for some reason. Why did everything hurt?

"Kai, can you hear me?"

Dessie. Dessie was nearby. He breathed sharply and tried to move his head to see, but felt a stinging pain in his neck and quickly stopped. The people around him gasped and began talking excitedly, saying things like "He's okay!" and "He tried to turn to her!"

"Can you see me?" asked Dessie. "If you can, then squeeze my hand. I'm temporarily blind."

He squinted. They chuckled, and Ms. Take told them sharply that if they couldn't take things seriously then they could all leave. The person holding his hand moved, and gently touched his cheek. Kai closed his eyes and sighed as emotions swept over him. He recognized Dessie's touch, and slowly everything came back to him. He remembered.

"He's crying," came Jay's sad murmur. "Kai, what's wrong?"

Kai moved his hand clumsily and concentrated hard on her blurry shape. Slowly, he reached out and ran his hand along her cheek. She gently took it and kissed it. He opened his mouth, and in a cracked, raspy voice, he whispered hoarsely, "I…I heard you the…whole time. You…said…you loved…me."

She kissed his fingers again , then gently felt his face and wiped the warm tears from his eyes. "I meant it," she said.

"Kai," stepped in Cole, humbly taking his injured brother's hand. "I'm so sorry. I should never have believed that video. I should never have treated you that way." The Master of Earth unashamedly wept into Kai's hand bitterly, regret gripping his heart. "We nearly lost you twice in one day. Please forgive me."

Kai smiled weakly, and squeezed Cole's hand. The apology helped. Cole had been fooled, just like the rest of them. _They put up with my failures,_ he thought, _and with my ego. Cole was doing what he thought he had to._ "I…for…give…," he murmured weakly, then gave up. There were other things he wanted to say, and Cole understood what he meant. Cole's tears quieted with relief, and Kai felt their bond again.

"…Zane," He rasped. "Get it."

The white figure left the room, and Jay asked indignantly, "Wait, what? Get what? Hey, is there a new secret code going around that Zane knows and I don't?!

"Jay, be quiet," snorted Cole. "But Kai, what _is_ he getting?"

"You shut up!" said Jay. "You didn't know either? You have no right to speak!"

" _GUYS_ ," said Nya, and they quieted.

Dessie scooted closer to Kai and laid her head next to him on the bed. Kai felt warm and fuzzy feelings as Zane trotted back into the room.

"I've returned," he said to Kai. Kai held out a trembling hand, and Zane placed a small, black bag in it.

Nya gasped. "Kai, are you…?"

"Is he what?!" demanded Jay. "Is he WHAT?!"

"No way," laughed Cole.

"NO WAY WHAT?!" cried Jay.

Kai tapped Dessie on the shoulder, and she sat up. His eyes were focusing more, and he could see that her eyes were red from all the tears she had cried. She was smiling, and he knew that she was just thankful he was alive.

He opened the drawstring bag with trembling, weakened fingers, and lifted out a gold ring with a diamond and turquoise flower on the top. Gently, he laid it in Dessie's hand. Her fingers closed around it, and she grew still. "Kai, what is this?" she breathed, but her wide eyes revealed that she was really asking if _he_ was seriously asking.

He grinned, then winced in pain. "I…really really…want to be your husband," he croaked. "Marry me?"

There was a shocked silence as everyone stared at the two. Dessie's eyes grew even wider, and Kai was lost again in the loveliness of them. "Kai Tefuto," she whispered. " _Yes_."

Everyone clapped in glee and exclaimed over them in excitement. Kai slipped the ring onto Dessie's finger, and she gently hugged him. He felt her tears of happiness running down his neck, but he didn't care.

"Ohhh," said Jay suddenly. "Ok. I get it now."

"Get what?" asked Nya.

"Why Kai wanted Zane to know where he hid the ring," said Jay. "He didn't want Cole to…uh… _meddle,_ " he said carefully, eyeing Cole's large biceps, "and he didn't want me to blab by accident."

"But why tell Zane?" asked Nya. "Kai didn't even tell me."

"His exact words to me where: 'watch over my wedding ring, Zane. I don't know what the future looks like, and if I would ever have to go down in a fight, I want Dessie to have this,'" said Zane. He looked directly at Nya. "He also explained to me that he wanted to surprise you as well with this happy news."

Cole smiled. Kai looked like he had fallen asleep in Dessie's embrace, and she was stroking his crazy hair tenderly, tears drying on her face. She began humming softly, and Ms. Take ushered everyone but Cole outside.

"He is the elder brother," she said when they all protested. "These two need some quiet, and he'll make sure that everything is fine. You can all take turns perhaps, but remember that rest is the best medicine for those two."

The door shut behind them, and their soft voices faded as they left the room and walked down the hall. Cole smiled as Kai began snoring softly, peacefully resting in his true love's arms. Dessie giggled and with Cole's help lay down beside him, still cradling his head in her arms and stroking his hair.

"Cole," she said softly. "I thought that everything would be fine after we came home. You know, after the Tournament of Elements."

"I know," murmured Cole, pulling his chair closer. "And I'm sorry. You've had a really awful day."

"This day was exactly what I needed," she whispered. "I mean, I never wanted anyone to get hurt, but if you think about it, this day has become a win for all of us. Remember that time Mom talked to us about love? When she said that you needed to let it grow, until one day you wake up and can't imagine life without it?"

Cole nodded, already knowing where she was going with this.

"I woke up in my room ten minutes ago," she said softly. "And I immediately knew that I couldn't live without Kai's love. I couldn't live without loving him. And when you brought me in here, I knew right away that I had to save him, because I would die inside if I didn't."

She sighed, stroking Kai's peaceful face. "I just wanted to hear him breathing again."

Cole grinned. "I have no idea what that feeling feels like, but I believe you when you say that you can't live without him. I've noticed the changes in both of you. Kai seems more…I don't know…mature? And you are braver now than when you first came back."

She yawned and snuggled against Kai. "I know," she said softly. "And I think that once we are married, things will be even more beautiful in our relationship. Just think - no matter what happens, our love remains. It did today. So it will tomorrow."

Cole smiled. It was moving, seeing the two of them together. It made him feel like things were restored now; as if this was how things were supposed to be. The three of them rested in the peacefulness of the room - Kai with bandages wrapped around his head and a cast on his left leg, and Dessie with her arms around him, and Cole beside them, vigilantly watching and making sure nothing interrupted Kai's pleasant dreams.

()

"I see that Shadow failed." The harsh voice held no regret or sorrow.

Form's voice trembled. "We…we didn't realize they were that strong." As she knelt before her mistress, she felt a pang of regret. Shadow hadn't been the nicest person to her, but she'd enjoyed helping him by using her powers to look and sound like the red ninja. She'd fooled the black one pretty good, but they'd won anyway.

"His mistake was hitting too close to the red one," said the first voice. "Taking everything from a person makes them dangerous and vengeful. The red ninja is already that way by nature. I don't know what Shadow was thinking."

"The red one had more to lose," whispered Form, not daring to look at the hard woman above her.

"Thus giving him more reasons to show no mercy as well," snorted the woman.

"…should I tell Soro to make his move? He could target a different one."

"No. Let him get jealous. I've seen how he looks at the blue ninja - his jealousy will come in handy. If anything, tell him we don't need him anymore. Let him think that he is his own master. But take custody of everything he leaves behind when he is bested."

"Bested?"

"You saw how well the red ninja did," replied the woman. "Imagine how well the others would do. You said it yourself…he was the more vulnerable one."

"Yes, Preeminent," whispered Form. She dared to glance at the hard woman, completely terrified of her. Even Shadow had begun to fear her when he was finishing the job - and now that Form had to obey her alone only made her even more afraid of this hardened woman.

"I will go tell Soro at once," said Form, and quickly left the woman's presence. This evil woman had big plans for Ninjago, and this was just the start. Form hadn't even been allowed to know what she had planned for it's guardians, the ninja. She felt almost sick to her stomach as she left to go do what The Preeminent had ordered.

 _Let the ninja enjoy their victory for now,_ she thought. There were darker days to come.

THE END


End file.
